The present invention relates to cleaning pads such as might be used in the washing of dishes, silverware and pots, as well in other applications.
A variety of pads are commercially available for use in the washing of dishes, silverware, pots and pans, and in other domestic as well as non-domestic applications. The pads are typically made of, or include, a sponge or sponge-like material, typically synthetic.
It has long been recognized that, in many applications it is desirable to use two or more pads, each with different cleaning characteristics. For example, in washing dishes, a conventional soft sponge-like pad may be ideally suited for cleaning slightly soiled silverware and plates but may be insufficiently abrasive to adequately clean pots or pans. To clean pots or pans it is often necessary to use a second pad, such as a steel wool pad, and the like.
In an effort to overcome the inconvenience of using two different pads, there have been a number of attempts to develop dual pads which permanently combine two types of materials in a single pad. Illustrative of such attempts are the pad disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,906,643 which is a composite cellular structure made up of a polyurethane foam layer chemically bonded to a layer of regenerated cellulose sponge. A similar pad is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,377,643. U.S. Pat. No. 2,804,728 discloses a sponge having one face over which a mesh of an abrasive material is partially embedded. U.S. Pat. No. 2,885,703 discloses a similar pad.
A common feature of the presently known pads is that in each case the two materials making up the pad are connected to each other in such a way that, when the pad is used, the hand of the user must ordinarily come in contact with both materials. Such contact is normally undesirable since one of the two materials is typically abrasive and uncomfortable to the touch.
There is thus a widely recognized need for, and it would be highly advantageous to have, a pad for use in washing dishes and the like which includes a relatively soft portion and a relatively abrasive portion and which is configured so that the hand of the user need not come in contact with the abrasive portion.